Ohio man arrested, abducted child rescued after high-speed chase

BROKEN BOW, Neb. – Nebraska State Patrol troopers arrested a man from Ohio and safely recovered an abducted three-year-old child after a high-speed pursuit across several counties on Saturday.

The incident began when the Nebraska State Patrol (NSP) received a notification from the Columbus Police Department in Ohio, alerting them that a suspect in a child abduction case might be traveling westbound on I-80 in Nebraska in a GMC Sierra truck. NSP troopers located the vehicle near mile marker 245, near Overton, and attempted a traffic stop, but the driver refused to stop, accelerating to around 100 miles per hour and passing vehicles on the shoulder.

Concerned for the child’s safety and that of other drivers, troopers initially discontinued the pursuit and issued alerts to nearby law enforcement agencies. Shortly after, Dawson County 911 received a report of the vehicle traveling northbound on Cozad Road and then westbound on Highway 40, near Callaway.

NSP troopers deployed stop sticks to disable the vehicle, but the suspect continued fleeing. As the pursuit resumed, the suspect drove off the road at one point, aiming toward a trooper who managed to escape unharmed.

The chase concluded when the driver veered off Highway 92, crashing through a fence and into a field where his vehicle became disabled. Troopers then took the driver, identified as 27-year-old Diego Revilla Gonzalez, into custody. The child was found safe in the back seat and was promptly cleared by medical personnel.

Gonzalez faces charges of flight to avoid arrest, willful reckless driving, child abuse without injury, attempted assault on an officer, and multiple traffic violations. He is currently held in Custer County Jail. The child has been placed in protective care and will be reunited with her mother.